Lore Sheet: Twisted Shadows
In the world of Azoryte, blood and gold rule. No longer do the Treaders rule with brute force given to them by the unholy paths. Instead, a silver tongue will serve just as well as cutting out one belonging to an opponent. Several kingdoms span several continents, and everyone has secrets. wip Geography and Political Realm In the current Age, Azoryte is home to several Kingdoms and political entanglements on several continents. wip Continents Riedhem The largest of the primary continents on Azoryte, Riedhem is home to Mankind. The North is rocky, with many rivers flowing all the way down the continent, and is home to Rosaven, the primary power in Riedem. In the West there are sandy beaches, with the Southwest being desert, the homeland of Highridge. The heart of the continent is a swamp which extends into the Southeast, which is where you will find the nation of Veydour. In the East of the continent, there is flowing grasslands and forests, where you will find the nation of Talholm. In the Northeast of Riedhem is Svon, a smaller kingdom that was the center of power in Riedhem during the Barbaric Age. Devu'Altur The second largest primary continent to the East of Riedhem, Devu'Altur is a mysterious land to outsiders that is full of the Fair Folk, or more commonly known as the Elves or Fae. Three types of Elves inhabit the land, the Altur, aristocratic elves who take their name from their continent, and rule the North and West of it, in a nation known as Tourden. Then there is the Delmuth, dark elves who work closely with their Altur counterparts. They inhabit the nation of Omaro, in the East and Center of the Devu'Altur. Then, to the South, is the jungle nation of Valen, home of the isolationist Kerym elves. Epora and Wizeas Significant smaller than the two first continents, Epora and Wizeas are little more than large islands, with Epora to the North of Riedhem and Wizeas to the West of it. Epora is chilled and rocky home of the Dasha, Wolfmen who are believed to have descended from the Great Beast of the North, who terrorized Riedhem in the Barbaric Age. Wizeas is an island larger than Epora which is to the West of Riedhem. The land is mostly flat jungle, with some marshes. It serves as the home of the Jisk, a strange people who are more lizard than man. Colonized by the Rosaven Dominion in the Golden Age, they worship the same pantheon as Man, unlike the Dasha, who worship the Great Beast, or the Elves, who worship the True Fae. The Wildlands The largest known continent, the Wildlands is less of a true continent and more of a twisted realm. It is a Savannah grassland to the south of all the primary continents, and full of strange and fantastical creatures. There are few permanent settlements there due to the land being under the influence of the Mystagogue Novicarr, or so Mankind claims. The Elves believe that the land is home of the Changelings, beings who disobeyed the True Fae, while the Dasha and Jisk have no major consensus on what the Wildlands was created by. No matter who created it, however, all that is known of the Wildlands is that it is a land in constant shift, and those who visit it are subject to the cruel whims of its patron. Heihaund Heihaund, or Umic as it is called by the Altur and Delmuth, is a continent of unknown size to the far Northwest of the primary continents. Little is known about the mysterious land, as those who actually return from exhibitions there often come back a shell of their former selves. All that is known about it is that it is home of the Ordric, Ghoulish creatures draped in robes and cloth. Scholars in Rosaven has proposed that perhaps Heihaund is the home of the Mystagogue Folun-Moore. Political Realms Riedhem Most of Mankind is ruled by the Rosaven Dominion, the Empire established by Rosaven in the Golden Age. Their rule is widely accepted, though not entirely liked, by the majority of Mankind. However, Highridge is attempting to achieve independence as Wizeas did in the Fallen Age. The Dominion's affairs are carried out in Dawning Falls, Capitol of the empire. Each individual nation has a ruler, but each ruler must answer to the High Minister of Rosaven. Devu'Altur The two northernmost nations on Devu'Altur, Tourden and Omaro, have a strong political alliance known as the Holy Empire of the True Fae, or more commonly known as the Divine Entente. They frequently come into conflict with the nation of Valen, as the Kerym Elves look to nature of enlightenment, and not the True Fae. These difference has led to many Kerym worshipping Oanum, Mankind's Divine of Nature, making Valen much friendlier towards the Rosaven Dominion than the Divine Entente. Epora and Wizeas Epora is ruled by a Master General, who wields absolute legislative and military power. Despite this tradition, Epora has never started a war, always being the defenders in the wars they have faught in. Though, if a Master General ever abuses his power, there is a tribunal that meets to take away his power. This has happened several times in Epora's history. Wizeas has an absolute leader too, but he is much different than a Master General. Instead of a military leader, the Zebiu nation is ruled by a religious leader, the Ba'quist, who interprets the Tome of Kurzok (known to Mankind as Farrinvar), who the Jisk have taken on as their patron. The Zebiu nation does have a parliment, however, which can overturn laws passed by the Ba'quist. Ages Dawn Age The Dawn Age, or the First Age is the beginning of recorded history on Azoryte. It's the shortest age, as little of what happened is known. What is known is that half of humanity worshiped the Pantheon of the Honorable, while the other half worshiped the Mystagogues. These Mystagogue-worshipers would come to be known as the Treaders, who would come to be reviled. However, during the Dawn Age, it was common and normal to be a Treader. In Devu'Altur, however, there were no differences in religion, all were forced to worship a dark being known as Celaeno. This would continue until the end of the Dawn Age until the prophet Waesrel Aedove seemingly destroyed Celaeno with the powers he claimed were given to him by the True Fae, deities representing perfect and all-powerful Elves. Waesrel preached that Celaeno was a malignant spirit set upon the Fair Folk by the humans to oppress them. Why he believed this is unknown, but the Historian's League believes Waesrel was captured and put into slavery years before becoming the prophet of the True Fae. The Jisk of Wizeas at the time worshiped varying deities often based on war and conquest, as several tribes fought for control of land and resources. These deities were so inconsistent, in fact, within the lifetime of priests, the gods allegiance features, feats, and even names would change. As for the Goblins, they did not have recorded history at the time, and so their pantheon of the time is unknown, but the Historian's League believes them to have been atheist, as they are now. The first coalition of humanity began in the Dawn Age was well, with most of humanity coming together to defeat the Great Beast of the North. It was a giant wolf believed to have terrorized the north of Riedhem. During a great battle, the Beast received fatal wounds, and swam off the northern coast to escape. Those in the Historian's League debate if the Great Beast was real, or if it is a legend designed to demonize a band of Dasha which could have raided northern Riedhem. However, the Dasha themselves claim to have been borne of the Great Beast at the end of the Dawn Age when it swam up to Epora, implying they too believe in the creature. Barbaric Age The Barbaric Age, more often referred to as the Barbaric Times or the Second Age, began when the Treaders nearly doubled in size by convincing humankind that the Honorable had abandoned them, and that the Mystagogues could save them from their peril and hardships. All the human kingdoms agreed to try the Mystagogues, and the Mystic Council was formed in the kingdom of Svon, full of dark-souled magicians known as the Twilight Clerics. Led by a devious man only known to history as Krehgein, the Twilight Priests unleashed the full power of the Mystagogues on Riedhem, leading to an age soaked in blood and oppression. The Treaders ruled Riedhem with an iron fist, using the powers gifted to them by the abominations they served. To escape, a group of mages known as the Dwellers escaped to the island of Aizin. Using their magic, they made the island sink into the sea, and over the years they would become the Merfolk known today. Eventually, a man only known as the Nameless Hero began uniting the people behind him to defeat the Treaders. This, depending on who you ask, lead to the Legend Age. During this time, the Elves had infighting that lead to the split of Tourden, Omaro and Valun. While Tourden and Omaro remained closer, Valun began distancing itself from the two other Elven nations. It was around the middle of the Barbaric Age that Legend Age (Late Barbaric Age) The Legend Age, Age of Legends, or Secondary Age, is a disputed age between the Barbaric Age and the Golden Age. As its status is still being debated by the Historian's League, it is not known officially as the Third Age. It is believed by some to be a separate age due to the massive change that followed the Nameless Hero rallying support, though others do not believe that the shift is not great enough to establish another age. In any case, when the Nameless Hero began rallying the people, the Mystic Council dispersed into the rest of the kingdoms, in an attempt to retain power. Using the sudden lack of central power in Svon, a man named Asbrir the Unbroken began a ruthless rebellion against the Council. The Nameless Hero supported Asbrir, and soon Asbrir found himself facing Krehgein. Asbrir's fighting and weaponry skills were more than a match for the incredible magical prowess of Krehgein, and their duel is said to have shook the sky. With a final swing of his sword, Asbrir decapitated the vile magician, and took Krehgein's mask for himself. Asbrir then assembled the armies of Svon and began assaulting the Treader forces wherever he found them, all while the Nameless Hero rallied more to fight the Treaders. Eventually, the Treaders were forced to summon the Mystagogue Folun-Moore if they were to survive. Folun-Moore initially caused great damage to the land, but Asbrir and the Nameless Hero brought their armies to face him. In the great battle, most of the Treaders were slaughtered, and in the end the Nameless Hero sacraficed himself to defeat Folun-Moore, and peace was restored. It was then that Asbrir formed the First Empire of Humanity, incorporating all kingdoms except for Highridge. The Empire would only have three Emperors before it crumbled at the end of the Legend Age. In the end, the War of the Thorns began, when the Delmuth Elves invaded Riedhem with the Altur Elves, due to their difference of religion. The war was difficult for both sides, but ended with a decisive victory by General Hena Storm-Leader, who would eventually marry Klaia Sea-Heart, making their family name Storm-Heart, a lineage that would last into the present age, and one that continues to be influential. Seeing what the religion of the True Fae did to the other Elves, the Kerym Elves of Valun decided to turn to nature for knowledge, which upset the northern Elves. This lead to a failed invasion of Valun by the Delmuth Elves immediately after the War of the Thorns, which failed critically. At the end of the age, the Zebiu Nation took over the entire island of Wizeas, the Dasha formed a central power, and the Merfolk fully formed into what they are today. The Goblins' history at this time is still heavily disputed, as they did not yet have recorded history. Golden Age The Golden Age, or the Third Age, began once the First Empire of Humanity fell and was replaced by the Rosaven Dominion, the power of Riedhem that thrives to this day. Formed in a peace agreement with Highridge to get them to join the rest of mankind, the new human superpower began to branch out from their continent. They began by colonizing the island of Wizeas. Initially angering the Jisk, they soon realized that the humans weren't horrific oppressors, and went quite easily along with the rule of the Dominion. The Jisk even adopted the Pantheon of the Honorable, to the anger of Tourden and Omaro. The two Elven nations, seeing an increase in mankinds power, launched another assault on Wizeas, Riedhem and Kerym. However, this invasion was quickly put down, and a peace agreement was struck. After the short war, the Dominion then moved into the north, capturing Epora and committing atrocities on the Dasha people, due to their hated ancestor. This lead to the Dasha siding with the Altur and Delmuth when the War of the Ages began. Soon, Highridge began rebelling against the Dominion, due to wanting a truly self-governing nation. The Dominion and Wizeas both began fighting them, though with minimal success. Tourden and Omaro once more saw a good opportunity to destroy humanity, and invaded with the help of the Dasha, who rebelled against the Dominion. The humans of Highridge ended their rebellion so they could fight back against the Elves. However, before one side was truly defeated, the long war was ended when the Elves went behind the backs of the Dasha and invaded them, then called for a peace treaty. Upon the Elven forces returning home, they were greeted by the Valun army, who destroy most of what was left of the Altur and Delmuth forces. This attempt to defang the northern Elven nations worked for a while, but they soon formed the Divine Entente, a strong political alliance that would quickly grow to rival the Dominion. During the War of the Ages, the Merfolk sold weapons to both sides, while remaining neutral. The Goblins were also first discovered by the Elves during the war, but were quickly ran out of the island of Bravikt by Goblin forces. This is also the Age when the Historian's League was founded. Fallen Age XXX Silver Age XXX Vision Age XXX Pantheon of the Honorable The Honorable, occasionally called the Divines or the Glorious, are the Gods of Mankind. There are nine of them, each with a specific Sanctum. All have temples that can be found in most nations, but there is only one sanctum for each. Their respective Paths reflect what they have providence over. For example, the Path of the Steel is mainly made up of craftsmen and warriors who are honor bound to their duties. Mystagogues The Mystagogues, also referred to as the Barbaric or the Tread-Guiders, are unholy beings that rival the powers of the Honerable. They are the patrons over concepts that most find sinful, and as such their Paths were buried after the Barbaric Times, despite the efforts of the remaining Treaders. Category:Lore Sheets